Chapter 95: Minor tricks

However, the owner of that long sword was not so happy.

That was a woman dressed in a Martial Artist’s uniform, tall and muscular, with an unattractive face, and because her body was much stronger than an ordinary woman’s, she lacked femininity.

She looked to be in her thirties, full of vigor; although her appearance wasn't beautiful, she possessed a unique demeanor, clearly not a mere flower vase.

She glanced at her broken long sword, then looked at Li Qi, her eyes filled with unconcealed displeasure, and said, “You’re just relying on the Sharp Weapon’s advantage. That saber of yours, is it a Ninth-Rank Sharp Weapon? Without a weapon, you would have been dead just now.”

But Li Qi couldn’t be bothered with her. He turned his head to look at Shen Shuibi: “Shen Guniang, are you alright? What happened? Why are these people causing trouble?”

“I… I was just watching her practice her sword and mumbled a few words to myself…” Shen Shuibi said, looking wronged.

She hadn’t said it for anyone else to hear, and besides… what she said wasn’t wrong.

Hearing this, the woman whose sword Li Qi had broken frowned and looked up: “Mumbling a few words to yourself? Young lady, you have no cultivation method, yet you loudly criticized my sword Move. I was just teaching you a lesson. Don’t make wild statements about things you don’t understand.”

“But… I do understand.” Shen Shuibi shrank back behind Li Qi, whispering.

“Alright, Big Sister,” Li Qi looked up and interrupted the conversation, “Let’s just drop this matter. I—”

Before Li Qi could finish, the muscular woman interrupted him: “Drop it? I’ve practiced sword for twenty-five years, relying on the Dao of the Sword to reach Ninth-Rank, and my swordsmanship has reached the pinnacle of subtlety. Yet she comes up and slanders my life’s work in swordsmanship, calling it a minor Dao. She must apologize.”

Hearing this, Li Qi finally understood the full story.

It turned out that this Big Sister was probably practicing her sword when Shen Shuibi saw her.

Who is Shen Shuibi? Before her cultivation method was crippled, she was a Spirit Beast from Mount Luofu, one of the Daoist Ten Great Grotto-Heavens, a Jade Rabbit of Moon Essence, Empress Luofu’s beloved personal attendant, and a Fifth-Rank practitioner of orthodox Xuanmen cultivation method!

A genuine immortal, she would naturally consider Ninth-Rank swordsmanship to be amateurish.

But she mumbled a few words to herself, and this Big Sister overheard her.

This Big Sister had practiced sword her entire life, and her lifelong pride was being disparaged. Upon closer inspection, she found that it was a weakling with no cultivation method, so she naturally wanted to demand an explanation and an apology.

This… it seemed neither side was wrong; it was just a misunderstanding.

Moreover, the other party was Ninth-Rank and a woman. Could this be that Martial Affairs Hall Deacon, Jing Yan?

Having figured this out, Li Qi awkwardly grimaced, then cupped his hands: “Then I will apologize on behalf of my little sister, Big Sister. We spoke out of turn. How about we just let this matter go?”

However, as Li Qi finished speaking, Shen Shuibi lowered her head, pressing her face against Li Qi’s back, and mumbled: “I was just kindly reminding her that she was on the wrong path…”

These words were overheard by the Big Sister again.

The woman’s eyes widened, her face filled with rage: “You still dare to speak!”

With that, she reached out directly to grab Shen Shuibi!

Li Qi’s expression darkened, and he immediately moved to block her.

This time, neither side used weapons. The moment they engaged, Li Qi felt a soft force, seemingly weak, yet like a maggot clinging to bone, or like flowing water, pushing him away.

Fortunately, Li Qi was most adept at dealing with flowing water.

The Carp Current Intent, practiced for over three hours daily, came into play at this moment. He was like a carp, swimming against the current in the water, carefully deflecting the flow, moving smoothly within it. That soft force was easily neutralized by him. He even took the opportunity to observe the progress bar, seizing the moment of recovery to swat away the opponent’s outstretched hand, directly leaving the unsuspecting woman’s guard wide open and her centerline exposed!

Li Qi once again agitated his inner Qi, unleashing the Carp Current Intent, and with a punch, the speed of his fist suddenly increased!

The Carp Current Intent was originally a cultivation method focused on maneuvering, then suddenly erupting like a Dragon leaping over the Dragon Gate when the enemy was unprepared.

This caught the woman off guard and struck true.

However, Li Qi knew his limits and didn’t deliver a solid blow. Instead, he turned his fist into a palm, pressing it against the woman’s face, transforming the immense force into a pushing motion, shoving her hard.

With over twenty thousand jin of immense, explosive force, although the woman immediately integrated her waist and stance, squatting into a horse stance to try and stabilize her center, she was still pushed back by Li Qi, stumbling several steps and leaving several footprints on the stone floor before stopping.

“Good Move, who are you? Your saber Move isn’t much, but your fist and foot cultivation method is quite good; your timing is excellent.” The woman, having suffered this setback, was somewhat surprised but not angry. Instead, she praised Li Qi.

With the progress bar, Li Qi’s greatest strength was seizing opportunities. Others could only rely on feeling, but he could directly see the progress of the opponent’s Move, understanding when their old strength had waned and new strength had not yet emerged.

Li Qi observed the other party. It seemed this person was not petty but genuinely valued the swordsmanship she had practiced her entire life, which was why she was so angry.

“I am Li Qi, hired by Manager Jing to escort the caravan. Big Sister, could you be Jing Yan?” Li Qi responded, cupping his hands.

“I am Jing Yan, but trying to get close won’t work. Your little sister spoke too much; ask her yourself what she said! I started practicing sword at seven, cultivated for twenty years to finally reach Rank, and now at thirty-two, I’ve practiced sword for twenty-five years, longer than she’s been alive. What right does she have to comment on my Dao of the Sword?” Jing Yan still remembered Shen Shuibi. Although she was polite to Li Qi, when she looked at Shen Shuibi, she was still very unhappy and insisted that Shen Shuibi apologize.

But Shen Shuibi simply refused to apologize. The Jade Rabbit seemed to have pride in her own words, shrinking behind Li Qi.

She looked very timid.

But she cowered and mumbled the most hurtful words in the most timid tone: “Apologize for what… Swordsmanship is just a minor art, merely a Sharp Weapon, yet it dares to be called a Dao? How ignorant…”

These words directly ignited Jing Yan’s fury. Her eyes blazed with anger. Although she had no sword in hand, she still stepped forward, seemingly intending to strike.

Seeing this, Li Qi immediately protected Shen Shuibi, then stepped forward, cupping his hands and saying: “Big Sister Jing, please calm your anger. My little sister is not as weak as she appears; it’s just that the Dao she cultivates is not suited for fighting. She was merely kindly pointing out your flaws. As a Martial Artist, can you not even accept that?”

“Point out my flaws? With her?” Jing Yan raised her head, completely disbelieving, but with Li Qi blocking her, she couldn’t make a Move.

“With her. Big Sister Jing, if you don’t believe me, how about we make a bet?” Li Qi’s eyes darted around as he said this.

He had a plan that could not only resolve this misunderstanding but also allow him to naturally build rapport.